Saturday, July 2, 2016

Looking Back

"Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you"
Rashi




Reflecting back on the last 46 days on the Pacific Crest Trail.

Arrived at Tuolumne Meadows, mile 942.5, on 6-29-16. It was quite a day, stood atop Donahue Pass at 1pm, stumbled into Tuolumne Meadows at 830pm, 30+ miles of hiking.

It was a crazy end to the Sierras and beginning to some zero days in hometown of Merced.

I zoomed into Tuolumne Meadows just before dark, hoping to catch the last bus to Merced. But, zoomed down the wrong trail, ending up in a high Sierra dude ranch! Me, a sweaty, smelly, dirty, PCT hiker, lost among a bunch of city slickers😐

Not to be deterred, I pushed on, finally finding a road to hitch a ride. Boom! First attempt, I am picked up by a family from Norway in a motor home headed to Yosemite Valley. Lars (the son), handed me a Bud light as I took a seat and away we went. A great start.

But, things didn't go on quite as well as I had hoped. My Norwegian friends had been on the road for as many hours as I had hiked. So, they pulled into the first RV park with a vacancy on 4th of July weekend. Unfortunately, with no formal space to pitch a tent. The only available option was a teepee which I could use for $30 :(

So, with 30 miles still existing between me and my hometown, I cowboy camped between a couple of bushes.

Next morning it was time to hitch a ride home. Car after car buzzed by me without stopping. Then, trail magic happened, a car pulled over. The driver was a PCT hiker I had met a few days prior. He had been taking zeros to visit a girlfriend. Yes! I was dropped off at a breakfast cafe located across the street from the bus stop. A large breakfast and a short walk and I was on my way.

I am in Merced visiting family and friends.
It's time for some much needed zeros 😊







Rabbit on the PCT

4 comments:

  1. Glad all is well. Enjoy your family and the zero days.

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  2. Glad all is well. Enjoy your family and the zero days.

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  3. Hey, remember to get back on the trail. I hear from blogs that a lot of hikers are calling it quits after the sierras or even before. People who had planned to through hike but found out the reality of the hike etc.

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